


A Grim Reminder

by Hallo_Mister_X



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: A Bit of Fluff, a bit of angst, you know how it goes!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:07:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26391661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hallo_Mister_X/pseuds/Hallo_Mister_X
Summary: Sometimes memories tend to stay, for better or for worse.
Relationships: Courier & Yes Man (Fallout), Courier/Yes Man (Fallout)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 33





	A Grim Reminder

About half a year ago, the Mojave changed for the better. Some might even say it was unrecognizable from before the second battle of Hoover Dam.  
Vegas was now stable. More so than it had been in a very long time. Most locals couldn’t recall a time without NCR troopers breathing down their necks or the Legion looming over their freedom. The dust needed time to clear after the Dam, but sure enough the city was in better shape than ever.

The Tops casino’s doors were bustling with visitors. There was hardly any room for people to squeeze in and out. Visitors poured over the various tables and slots to forget about their troubles for the night. Word was that the Ace’s theatre would be completely sold out for their evening show, and the restaurant had a mile long wait list going out the door.   
Amidst the waves of people, a familiar duo descended the main staircase. Space separated the two from fellow patrons, who stopped to take in the sight of them. The courier rubbed their eyes with a satisfied smirk, walking to the direct side of Yes Man. Their meeting with the Chairmen was, as predicted, a huge success. The courier found themselves yawning as a response to the late hour.  
“God, that went way longer than it was supposed to. My brain feels like mush.” The courier chuckled. Yes Man’s screen brightened at their remark.  
“They must have really wanted that tax reduction. The chairmen went for two more hours than scheduled!”  
“And yet we still got the better end of the deal.”  
“It pays to have a good negotiator on our side.” Yes Man’s elbow lightly knocked their arm.  
“Up for some blackjack once we get back? Tonight’s the night I’m going to beat you, I swear!”  
“Okay, we’ll see about that.” He chuckled slyly.  
As the crowd parted more and more for them, the lights from the front desk lit up across the room. Once looking up at the bright check in area, the duo halted in their tracks.  
There, guarding the door, was a familiar suit. It’s checkered pattern stood out like a sore thumb anywhere in the Mojave. The courier’s fingers fumbled in their holster, but only pulled out air.  
_‘My gun is still up front’_. Their heart seemed close to tearing through their rib cage. The courier’s fear was quickly subdued by three claws gingerly draping over their shoulders.  
“Six, look.” Yes Man motioned to the figure. Surely enough, when the courier squinted they noticed a separate familiar face taking shape. They exhaled in relief, slowly walking towards the man.  
“Swank,” The courier paused. “I didn’t realize you were holding onto that.”  
“You like it?” Swank puffed his chest out with a smirk. ”Dug this number out a few days ago. Some of the other chairmen found it with the rest of Benny’s old stuff, figured I’d give it a test run during my shift.” He smirked at the jacket, completely oblivious to the courier’s shaking. “Think me holding onto it is what Benny would have wanted. Gotta have a cat smooth enough to fill his shoes around here. And people know this getup means business.”  
“You’re not wrong.” The courier gulped. Swank finally met eyes with the courier. Their feet shifted on the worn carpet and their hands clenched together.  
“Wait,” Swank signed. “Oh, shit. This is about your history with him, isn’t it?”  
“Just a little.” The courier grimaced.  
“I’ll take it off if you need me to, pal. No worries. We’ll keep it nice and safe somewhere else.”  
“Thanks, Swank. I’d really appreciate that.”  
At that, the boss ascended the casino stairs, with another chairman temporarily filling his place.  
“Well, that’s one thing I wasn’t expecting to see today.” They laughed brittly. “It really isn’t that easy to get rid of Benny, is it?”  
Yes Man stood frozen in place, the only indication he was still there being his dim, wavering screen.  
“Hey, are you okay?” No response. “Yes Man?” They waved their hand in front of his screen. After refreshing once more, his screen seemed to glow brighter.  
“Oh, sorry about that! I guess I got lost in thought for a moment!”  
“Everything alright?”  
“Sure, no need to worry!” He glanced back to where Swank had taken his leave. “What do you say we head back?“  
“Please.”

Spirits were drained around the Lucky 38 for the night. Courier Six turned in somewhat early on the account of feeling shaken. Their absence left Yes Man in one place: alone in the Penthouse. Worse than that though, he was alone with his thoughts.  
In an instant, there he was. Yes Man’s conscience and memory showed him the one place he dreaded the most. Those four, dirty walls in the back of a dusty suite. Benny’s workshop at the Tops.  
He hadn’t been there since first meeting the courier. It’s not like there was something there for him to return to. Benny never gave him anything, unless the Platinum chip counted at all. If he had a heart, it would be beating fast at the imagery in his head. He could still hear that faint little radio in the suite itself. That little box gave him at least some joy on days that would have been otherwise cold. Yet the faintness of the radio’s song also reminded him of how slim his hopes of freedom were. There was no love in that room, nor companionship. Just the icy, calloused harshness that was Benny.  
It’s not like Yes Man tried to fixate on Benny. If he could forget him, then he would. Yet no matter how many times Benny ran away, he would always pop back up to cause more problems. The checkered pattern of that jacket burned into Yes Man’s thoughts. Without comprehending it, his screen frenzied in static as Benny’s voice echoed through his thoughts.

_“Hiya, Benny! Nice to see you again!”_  
_“You got those stops ready yet?” Benny’s aloof voice carried in the workshop. He procured a silver lighter from his pocket, filling the stiff air with a glare. A cigarette met his lips as he eyed Yes Man._  
_“I’ve been able to locate around four potential ambush points for the courier’s route to New Vegas. Isn’t that great?”_  
_“Didn’t I tell you to do this all earlier, ya tin can? Listen. I’m gonna need details on every route to bring this shindig into full swing. If the big man finds out about any of this, it’ll be curtains for the both of us.”_  
_“I’m so sorry. This network delay must be my fault! I’ll look harder for the rest of those spots right now.” Yes Man’s claws slightly twitched._  
_“Yeah, well get to it. We ain’t got time to spare.” Benny snapped._  
_“Oh! It says here that a potential stop along the way of the courier’s route is a town called Goodsprings. You should have a good amount of luck going there.”_  
_“Yeah? How soon should they be there?”_  
_“Hmm... approximately three weeks from now!”_  
_“Great. We’re gonna need some extra firepower to pull this off. Maybe Khans.” Benny pondered. “Yes Man, you keep digging for more info on that cat’s route. And do it all by the time I come back, will ya?”_  
_“You’ve got it, Benny! Whatever you say!”_  
_“Just get it done.“ The light from the cigarette carried out the door with Benny, leaving the room cold once more._

The next day played through normally enough. The courier’s walk had more pep in it compared to hours prior. They practically hopped out of the elevator and into the penthouse to greet their friend. Yes Man still remained stationed on the mainframe. His screen repeatedly flickered upon noticing their arrival.  
“Morning, Yes Man!”  
“Good morning! How are you doing? Are you feeling okay?”  
“Oh, you mean after yesterday? I was a bit shaken up, but everything’s fine now.” They paused, concern furrowing their brows. “What about you? You holding up alright?”  
“I am perfectly fine!” Yes Man’s screen flickered once again.  
“Oh good!” Their figure relaxed. “Hey, whenever you’re available I’d love to go over some notes on the securitron patrols.”  
“Perfect! I’ve got quite a bit of information on that if you’d like to hear.”  
“Of course.” They positioned their chair to face Yes Man’s screen.

"So it appears that the feedback on the new securitron routes have been fairly positive with locals. Only minor complaints have been brought in, and that’s just from areas they don’t patrol as much. A few have suggested extra securitron patrols for the less inhabited outer areas. Mostly to keep out any undesirables.”  
“Like your favorite buddies from Red Rock Canyon?” The courier giggled, looking up at his screen.  
“Yes, or anyone who’s a problem for that matter.”  
“Oh,” The courier blinked. “You usually laugh at that. You positive you’re feeling alright?”  
“Sure, but that’s not what’s important! The state of Freeside’s security is more of a priority. Want to keep looking it over?”  
“Uh, alright. Let’s see what you got.”  
“Great!”

Hours had passed from the start of the duo’s work. They had shifted to their own devices hours ago, with Yes Man working in the mainframe and the courier scribbling papers on their table. On occasion they each took breaks, per the other person’s request. The beating sun had since fallen below the earth and been replaced with the calm glow of the moon. The courier’s yawn filled the void of silence in the room. A stretch on the back of their chair was met with a chorus of pops from their spine.  
“I’m gonna take the rest of the night off.” The courier called out.  
“That’s wonderful! You deserve to have time to rest. You work so hard!”  
“Hey,” Their hands raised a stack of cards into sight. “You up for that round of blackjack? I already got the deck shuffled.”  
“I’m sorry, Six. It sounds nice, but I should catch up on these calculations for tomorrow. I could get one of the other securitrons to join you, if you’d like.”  
“No, that’s alright.” They stepped back in surprise. “Well don’t work too hard, okay?”  
“No need to worry about me! You go enjoy your night.”  
The courier weakly waved in his direction. As the elevator doors swept them out of sight, their faltering smile completely unraveled.

The next few days carried on as such. As more and more time passed, the courier could feel Yes Man trying to push away. He eagerly awaited news regarding business, so much so that he’d dig into work every time the courier took a breather. Their frustration grew the more they were pushed aside.  
As they rode the elevator up to the Penthouse for their morning paperwork, they fiddled with the rim of their coat. The elevator doors swung open, revealing the skyline to their city. Yes Man’s computer mainframe buzzed off to the side. As the courier stepped down the Penthouse stairs, they cleared their throat.

“Hey, do you have a few minutes? I was wondering if you could help me look over some documents.”  
They waited eagerly for Yes Man’s response. In their hands rested yet another pile of financial forms courtesy of the Strip families. Yes Man continued to reside on the other side of the room in the main monitor, where he had barely left in recent days.  
“Sure! Don’t you worry about it. I’ll fill those out.” He urged.  
“Oh, well you don’t need to do the whole thing. I only wanted a little help understanding these few pieces-“  
“Consider the whole thing done! You go take some time to rest.”  
One of the securitron guards wheeled over to them and procured the papers. The guard hurriedly rushed the papers over to the main monitor’s desk, only to just as quickly return to their previous position. With that, the main monitor screen flickered, and Yes Man rolled over to glance through the documents.  
“You’re positive?” The courier hesitated.  
“I can handle it. It’s what I was made for, after all.” The courier only had a view of Yes Man’s back. His arms appeared highly raised, as if the papers were the only thing in his line of sight. Courier Six peered at Yes Man in utter bafflement. Immediately, a chair screeched on the floor towards Yes Man’s figure, accompanied by a sigh from the courier.  
“Okay, we gotta talk.” They spoke, sitting down. “What’s wrong?”  
“What do you mean? I’m operating at full capacity. In fact, I’m nearly done looking over those documents you gave-“  
“Yes Man, we both know something’s up. You haven’t been acting like yourself lately and I want to help you out.”  
“I’m sorry, but I’m not sure if I understand. Now, about those documents-“  
“Yes Man, please. I’m worried about you.”  
He sheepishly turned around to face the courier. The concerned glare in their eyes spoke loud and clear to him. There was no inching around this conversation after all. The AI remained silent for a moment to ponder his words.  
“I don’t want to disappoint you.”  
“I- what?” The courier blinked in surprise.  
“It’s just- you’ve been working so hard! And you do so much for the entire strip all the time. After all, I keep causing problems for you and I want to fix them!”  
“Problems? What problems are you talking about? You’re always the one lending a hand!”  
“The problems that caused you so much trouble back in Goodsprings! All of the pain you had to go through after Benny shot you in the head, and all because of the information I gave him!” The charisma in his voice wavered. “Talk about a bad friend, right?”  
Yes Man wheeled back while the courier let his words sink in. They leaned forward in utter disbelief, visibly tensing up with each passing moment.

“Yes Man,” They peeped out. “You don’t think I’m mad about that, do you?”  
“I just... don’t get why you’re not. Getting shot in the head is a really big deal! And I was a part of that! But you’ve never held it against me. And, if you want to, you should blame me! It was wrong!”  
“You were programmed to follow orders at that point. Why would I be upset about that?”  
“Benny would have been.” He paused. “And I worked with him. Frankly, I don’t get why you’ve never seen me like him. Aren’t he and I basically the same?”  
“Woah woah woah. Hey, listen.” The courier finally stood and strode closer to Yes Man. “Yeah, you worked with Benny. But you know what? I worked with House. And in the end we both chose our own paths together. That was our decision.”  
The twiddling of Yes Man’s claws reflected against the flickering of his screen. He subtly winced as the courier’s footsteps walked forward. At this, they offered a comforting smile, quieting a small portion of his nervous energy.  
“You had to do as you were told earlier, but that was then. Things are different now. If you were told to set up that ambush again, you could say no if you wanted to. Benny wouldn’t bat an eye at shooting me a second time.” The courier raised a hand to the glass of Yes Man’s screen. The static tickled their skin the closer their fingers came to touching the surface. “So you’re not Benny. Never have been, never will be.”  
The utter kindness of the situation took Yes Man aback. His screen continued to dim and brighten, his face cutting in and out more frequently.  
“I,” Yes Man paused. “I’ve never thought about it like that before. I’m not sure what to say.” He eyed his hands, fidgeting his claws once again. “Thank you.”  
“Hey, of course. We’re partners. We’ve got each other’s backs through thick and thin.”  
The courier wrapped a hand around one of his claws, rubbing the smooth metal across their thumb. Yes Man rested his free hand upon the courier’s, hoping to convey even a fraction of the love he held for them.   
“So, still up for that game of Blackjack?” Yes Man asked. A cheery tone had set back in his voice, one that hadn’t been there for quite a few days.  
“You know it. Maybe I’ll even let you win this time.” They teased.  
“You mean like everytime we play? Sounds fun!”  
  



End file.
